Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 31 - Chapitre 40

AMIRA I kept my back turned to Derrick when he came back and acted like I was asleep. We both knew I wasn't fooling anyone. Without saying a word, he lay down behind me and rested one hand on my hip.A warning growl almost escaped my throat, but I held it back.His touch calmed my wolf. The fear that had been crushing her ever since we stepped onto Orion's land slowly eased.I hated that.He made me feel calm.He made me feel steady.He made me feel like I needed him.That only made me angrier.Being around Derrick was exhausting. Every feeling crashed into the next before I could deal with the last one.Now I had another problem.His kiss.A real kiss.Not one of the ones that only happened in my dreams.With him lying behind me, sleep finally came. I wasn't sure how long I stayed asleep before my wolf exploded with panic and forced me awake.My eyes flew open.Beside me, Derrick had already reached for me, trying to pull me against him.Before he could, a sharp blade ripped throug

AMIRA “Liar.”A low, bitter laugh rumbled from Derrick's chest.His hands slid slowly up my body until they settled over my stomach. His clothes were still soaked, but the warmth of his body reached me anyway. His broad chest stayed firm against my back, and I could feel every steady breath he took.The hard length of him rested against the small of my back.My heart skipped.He was right.I was lying to both of us.Every slow touch from his hands sent a wave of heat through me. My toes curled without me meaning them to. My body betrayed every word that came out of my mouth.“You've ignored it this long,” I whispered. My voice barely came out. Closing my eyes felt easier than facing what was happening.“That was before I touched you.” His voice was rough, almost strained. “Before I kissed you.”He held me close.His hands didn't wander.They didn't need to.He wasn't giving me any room to escape.“Before I found out I could get this damn jealous just from another man looking at yo

DERRICK I slept in broken stretches through the night. One ear stayed alert, listening for any sound that meant trouble. One arm stayed around Amira Kingsley, unwilling to let go.She barely slept either.Every now and then, she woke up and quietly moved away from me. She would lie there for a while, tense and restless. Then, without saying a word, she would drift back until she was close again.Neither of us spoke about yesterday.The silence stayed between us all night.By the next morning, our clothes had finally dried. They still carried the smell of the Moonwater River, but I could live with that.Anything was better than Amira smelling like Ronan."I don't know this part of the Arcane Dominion very well," she said as we stepped out of the cave. Her voice was steady, but it sounded tighter than usual. "I should still be able to find any spell traps. Just stay close to me, and listen to everything I say."She was trying to sound confident.She wasn't fooling me.Yesterday had s

AMIRA Listening to Orion speak made me see just how much of my life had never really been mine. Every choice had been controlled by someone else. Every piece of freedom had been taken away before I even knew what freedom felt like.Deep down, I'd always known I had been given the worst life possible. But I also knew I had done terrible things. Those memories never left me. I believed I deserved to be punished for them.Still... maybe it was finally time to try forgiving myself.I didn't know if that was even possible.But if Derrick truly wanted the truth, then I would give it to him."I was thirteen the first time I tried to run away from my father. He caught me before I got very far. He dragged me back, tied me up, and left me there for three days without mercy."When he finally came back, he brought a special mix of wolfsbane with him. He coated a blade with it, forced me to shift into my wolf, and cut into her body."The pain was beyond anything I can describe."After that, i

DERRICK “Where is Amira?” I asked, my voice hard as I stared down at the cup of tea in front of me.None of this felt real.The small tea room was warm, and bright sunlight poured through the windows. That made no sense because there had been no windows outside the building.Only five minutes ago, I had been fighting to keep Amira alive.Now I was sitting in a quiet little tea room with a delicate cup resting in front of me.Witches.For all I knew, whatever was inside this tea could kill me.Three strangers shared the room with me.An older woman, short and round, carried the last of the teacups to the table. Her long gray hair had thinned with age, and a pair of thick glasses rested on her nose as she studied me.Across from me sat a young woman who looked no older than twenty. Her long red hair fell over her shoulders, and a gentle smile stayed on her face as she accepted her tea.Near the far wall, Amira lay unconscious on a wooden bench.Beside her sat a middle-aged blonde wom